National Security (2003)

F

Written for
the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Office of Film and
Broadcasting.

Obnoxious, racially charged odd-couple
action-comedy pairing a put-upon white ex-cop (Steve Zahn) with
the churlish, chronically offended black security guard (Martin
Lawrence) who got him fired and imprisoned on false charges of
police brutality. As directed by Dennis Dugan, the film plays
Lawrence’s racist rants for laughs, while potential sympathy for
white men or cops getting a raw deal is mitigated by making the
villain a corrupt white police lieutenant.

SDG

Martin Lawrence rants endlessly against the
White Man and Steve Zahn tries to endure him in the obnoxious
odd-couple action-comedy National Security (Columbia),
directed by Dennis Dugan.

MPAA Rating

Caveat Spectator

When Earl Montgomery (Lawrence) and Hank Rafferty (Zahn) first
meet, neither is in a good mood. Hank is a cop whose partner was
recently killed investigating a warehouse break-in, while Earl
has just been thrown out of the police academy program after
recklessly destroying a police cruiser and displaying nothing but
insolence toward authority.

When Hank comes across Earl struggling to reach his car keys
through a partially closed window, his initial response to this
potentially suspicious scene is brusque but professional. Earl,
however, is immediately abusive and defiant, escalating the
situation to a minor struggle.

Unfortunately, as videotaped by a passerby, the confrontation
looks suspiciously like police brutality — especially when a bee
bumbles into the scene, leading the highly allergic Earl to drop
thrashing onto the ground while Hank wildly swings his billy club
at the bee and tries to stomp it to death.

At the trial, Earl falsely testifies against Hank, playing the
victim to the sympathetic all-black jury. While Earl’s
persecution-complex paranoia is so profound that he may actually
believe that he was the victim of excessive force, he
unambiguously perjures himself regarding the role of the bee in
order to shaft Hank.

Although previously Earl had told police about the bee, Hank
is somehow unable to establish the basic facts in court. Found
guilty, Hank is sentenced to six months in prison, where he must
assault guards and incur solitary confinement simply to survive
the wrath of the black prisoners.

Six months later, back on the street, he takes a job as a
security guard while working on his own to find his partner’s
killer. His efforts lead him to another warehouse theft, where he
is stunned to run across Earl, also working as a security guard.
The bad guys flee, leading to a high-speed chase that ends with
both Hank and Earl in police custody.

Maddeningly, despite the fact that the interrogating officer — a black lieutenant (Bill Duke) who is one of Hank’s former
colleagues — personally heard Earl’s original admission about the
bee and knows how unreliable he is, Hank is treated as a liar and
a criminal who is stalking Earl, while Earl is again treated as a
victim. Earl, meanwhile, is tickled by the notion of again
falsely testifying against Hank and sending him back to prison,
but relents after extorting an "apology" from Hank for the
original "beating."

Never in the whole movie does Earl apologize to
Hank for any of this, or undo any of the damage he has
done in Hank’s life. Earl never even acknowledges that he lied at
Hank’s trial; he consistently maintains his delusional conviction
that he really was beaten. Nor does he get any comeuppance for
his behavior; instead, the movie winks at his outrageousness and
rewards his brashness. For example, the film demeans its entire
female contingent by having every single woman respond to Earl’s
dubious charms.

Over time, Earl does come to sympathize with Hank, especially
when he realizes that Hank’s conviction cost him not only his job
and his freedom but his girlfriend as well. Yet even then,
instead of apologizing, Earl says sympathetically, "You know what
you are, Hank? You’re a black man."

One of Earl’s lowest moments comes after offering to help Hank
win back his ex-girlfriend by backing up Hank’s contention that
there was no beating — though to Hank Earl maintains that this
will really be a "lie." When the moment actually comes, Earl
reneges upon discovering that Hank’s ex-girlfriend is a beautiful
black woman. His unapologetic explanation: He’s against
interracial romance — that is, when it’s the man who is
white.

Besides the film’s other problems, there are huge plot holes
(such as how the protagonists, who are wanted by police, get a
van loaded with stolen goods off a garbage scow without being
caught). And the denouement is unnecessarily extended by an
overlong shootout action sequence culminating in an unabashed
revenge-driven climax.

Earl’s endless racist rants and insolence toward authority,
being played for laughs, are generally more tasteless than
offensive, especially since he himself admits in one scene that
even he doesn’t necessarily believe everything he says.

Yet the movie plainly expects the audience to enjoy the
prospect of a beleaguered white man suffering at the hands of a
smug, self-righteous black man who never owns up to what he’s
done, never gets his comeuppance, and is rewarded in the end with
a badge. To top it off, any potential sympathy for innocent white
men or cops getting a raw deal is offset by introducing a corrupt
white police lieutenant as the villain.

Because of racist stereotyping, frequent
action violence, a sexually suggestive scene, some crass
expressions, minimal profanity, and an instance of rough
language, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification
is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of
America rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some
material may be inappropriate for children under 13.